Proposed bill would allow Trump to explore buying Greenland ...

President Donald Trump has not been secretive about his desire to acquire Greenland, but a proposed law would authorize him to move forward on that wish.

HR 1161, introduced in the House on Monday by Georgia Rep. Earl Carter, would authorize Trump to “enter into negotiations to acquire Greenland.”

What’s more, the bill also held that if Trump were successful in purchasing the self-governed island, it would also be renamed to “Red, White and Blueland.”

The bill was referred to multiple Congressional committees, including the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Trump originally broached the idea of acquiring Greenland during his first term in office, but has stepped up his rhetoric as he’s entered the White House again, citing national security concerns in wanting to add the territory to the United States.

Currently Greenland is an “autonomous territory” within the Kingdom of Denmark. While it still receives aid from Denmark, it is self-ruling and administers its own government and judicial system.

According to an opinion poll cited by The Guardian, 85% of residents of the island do not want to be part of the United States in any capacity.

Greenland Prime Minister Múte Egsede has rejected the idea of the country becoming part of the United States, while Denmark Prime Minister Mette Fredriksen echoed similar sentiments.

“Greenland is today a part of the kingdom of Denmark. It is part of our territory, and it is not for sale,” she told Reuters.

Trump has continued to insist that the U.S. is “going to have it” when it comes to the island nation, and repeated an oft-used comment that Greenland residents “want to be with us” despite survey responses to the contrary.

Before he took office, Trump also declined to rule out the use of military force to acquire Greenland and the Panama Canal zone, saying that the U.S. needed both for “economic security.”

According to Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution, the president can negotiate treaties and the exchange of territory with other nations, but those treaties must be ratified by two-thirds of the U.S. Senate.

Congress also has the ultimate authority of whether a territory becomes a state. Typically a territory would hold a referendum and would formulate a state constitution, and if Congress approves, it would require a joint resolution that would then have to be signed by the president.

The United States has previously purchased land from Denmark, doing so in 1917 when they acquired the Virgin Islands for $25 million. The U.S. Virgin Islands elect a territorial governor, and have a delegate representing them during Congressional debates, but that delegate does not have voting power, similar to arrangements involving Puerto Rico, American Samoa and Washington, D.C.